Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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166. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if a contract to provide quarantine facilities to international protection applicants at a facility (details supplied) in County Louth is to be renewed; if so, when renewal will take place; the period for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35422/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The emergency centre to which the Deputy refers is currently being used to provide quarantine facilities for residents who left their allocated accommodation to live temporarily with family or friends and who now wish to re-enter International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) accommodation. IPAS adopted this policy last year following consultations with public health officials in order to mitigate the risk of spread of COVID-19 from private accommodation to the IPAS accommodation network. My Department continues to work closely with the HSE and public health to manage the impact of the pandemic on the IPAS accommodation network and, in particular, the risk posed by new variants, in order to ensure the safety of all IPAS residents.

All emergency centre contracts, including the contract to which the Deputy refers, are currently under review. It would not be appropriate to comment further on what contractual arrangements, if any, the Department might put in place in respect of particular centres in the future.

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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167. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if a monthly breakdown of the number of international protection applicants looked after at a quarantine facility (details supplied) in County Louth from December 2020 to May 2021 will be provided; the number of persons accommodated; the average length of stay for each month in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35423/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The centre to which the Deputy refers is currently being used to provide quarantine facilities for residents who left their allocated accommodation to live temporarily with family or friends and who now wish to re-enter International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) accommodation. IPAS adopted this policy last year following consultations with public health officials in order to mitigate the risk of spread of COVID-19 from private accommodation to the IPAS accommodation network.

The average length of stay at this centre is 14 days. The below table provides a breakdown of the number of residents that the centre has accommodated between the period of December 2020 and May 2021.